United(US:UAL)2026-01-20 21:00Financial Performance - Full-year diluted earnings per share (EPS) reached $10.20, an 8% increase year-over-year, with adjusted diluted EPS at $10.62[1] - Pre-tax earnings for the full year were $4.3 billion, with a pre-tax margin of 7.3%, and adjusted pre-tax earnings of $4.6 billion, with an adjusted pre-tax margin of 7.8%[11] - Net income for the year ended December 31, 2025, was $3,353 million, a 6.5% increase from $3,149 million in 2024[37] - Earnings per share (diluted) for Q4 2025 was $3.19, an 8.1% increase from $2.95 in Q4 2024[37] - Adjusted operating income for the year ended December 31, 2025, was $4,972 million, down 4.5% from $5,208 million in 2024[61] Revenue and Passenger Metrics - Q4 revenue was $15.4 billion, marking the highest quarterly revenue in United's history, with a 4.8% increase compared to Q4 2024[11] - United flew a record 181 million passengers in 2025, averaging over 496,000 passengers daily[2] - Passenger revenue for Q4 2025 was $13,926 million, a 4.9% increase from $13,275 million in Q4 2024[37] - Total operating revenue for the year ended December 31, 2025, reached $59,070 million, reflecting a 3.5% increase compared to $57,063 million in 2024[37] - Total passengers increased to 45,679 thousand in Q4 2025, up 3.0% from 44,344 thousand in Q4 2024[42] Operating Expenses and Costs - Operating expenses for Q4 2025 totaled $14,011 million, a 6.2% increase from $13,192 million in Q4 2024[37] - Salaries and related costs increased by 4.6% to $4,524 million in Q4 2025 compared to $4,325 million in Q4 2024[37] - Aircraft fuel costs rose by 9.2% to $2,923 million in Q4 2025 from $2,676 million in Q4 2024[37] - The average aircraft fuel price per gallon was $2.49 in Q4 2025, an increase of 3.6% from $2.40 in Q4 2024[55] Cash Flow and Capital Expenditures - United's operating cash flow for the year was $8.4 billion, with free cash flow of $2.7 billion, and similar free cash flow is expected in 2026[11] - Free cash flow for Q4 2025 was $(579) million, compared to $901 million in Q4 2024, reflecting a significant decline[58] - Adjusted capital expenditures for Q4 2025 were $1,916 million, a decrease of 19.5% from $2,384 million in Q4 2024[58] - The company had capital expenditures of $(5,874) million in 2025, compared to $(5,615) million in 2024, an increase of 4.6%[66] Debt and Assets - Adjusted total debt decreased to $32,094 million in 2025 from $34,866 million in 2024, a reduction of $2,772 million[59] - Total assets increased to $76,448 million as of December 31, 2025, compared to $74,083 million in 2024[63] - Cash and cash equivalents decreased to $5,942 million in 2025 from $8,769 million in 2024, a decline of $2,827 million[63] Special Charges and Gains - The company recorded a special charge of $561 million in 2025 related to labor contract ratification bonuses for employees[68] - The company reported net gains of $303 million on the sale of assets, primarily from aircraft sale-leaseback transactions[69] Tax and Interest - The effective tax rate for the year ended December 31, 2025, was 22.1%, down from 24.4% in 2024, due to a release of valuation allowance related to realized capital gains[71] - The company reported a decrease in interest expense by 12.1% to $324 million in Q4 2025 from $369 million in Q4 2024[37] Operational Efficiency - The airline achieved its lowest seat cancellation rate in history and had the lowest cancellation rate among large U.S. network carriers in 2025[10] - The government shutdown impacted pre-tax earnings by approximately $250 million in Q4 2025[11] - United plans to take delivery of over 100 narrowbody aircraft and approximately 20 Boeing 787 aircraft in 2026, the most widebody aircraft delivered in a year by any U.S. airline since 1988[6] Customer Satisfaction - United's Net Promoter Score (NPS) reached its highest-ever monthly score in November 2025, despite the government shutdown[4]